Youth pay the price
BY IVY BETALMOS
Every time the dollar rises, Filipino families may pay the price. While some see a stronger dollar as an opportunity, millions of Filipinos face a different reality: more expensive fuel, rising food prices, shrinking purchasing power, and salaries that struggle to keep up. For the youth, who are preparing to enter an already challenging economy, a weakening peso means a future where financial independence may become even harder to achieve. We must stop treating the dollar’s rise as a victory and start recognizing it for what it can be: a warning sign of economic pressures that demand our attention.
The Philippines depends on imported goods, including fuel, raw materials, and certain food products. When the dollar becomes more expensive, importing these goods generally costs more in pesos. Businesses may pass those additional expenses on to consumers, contributing to higher prices. For families already stretching their salaries to cover household expenses, a weakening peso is another burden. For students relying on allowances, minimum-wage earners, and young workers beginning their careers, it can mean sacrificing necessities, delaying plans, or giving up opportunities simply because everything costs more.
The youth, in particular, cannot afford to ignore this problem. We are entering a world where financial independence is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve. Graduates hope to find decent-paying jobs, young professionals want to save for their future, and students dream of finishing their education without becoming an additional burden to their families. Yet when prices rise faster than incomes, these goals become harder to reach. How can young Filipinos build savings, start businesses, or plan for their future when a growing portion of their income goes toward basic necessities? Economic instability does not just affect today’s households; it can also limit the opportunities available to the next generation.
To be fair, a weaker peso does not hurt everyone equally. Overseas Filipino workers may receive more pesos when converting their dollar earnings, while exporters can become more competitive in certain circumstances. However, these benefits do not erase the broader challenges, especially when imported goods become more expensive and inflation puts pressure on household budgets. A favorable exchange rate for some should never be used to dismiss the struggles of many. The real question is not whether the dollar is gaining value, but whether the Philippine economy is becoming stronger and whether Filipinos can afford a decent standard of living.
Instead of celebrating a rising dollar as if it were an economic achievement, we should demand accountability, sound economic policies, stronger local industries, and better-paying jobs. The government must work toward reducing unnecessary dependence on imports, improving agricultural productivity, supporting Filipino businesses, and protecting vulnerable households from rising costs. Young people, too, must learn to understand economic issues, question misleading narratives, and participate in conversations that shape our country’s future. Our generation deserves more than advice to save money and spend wisely when economic conditions make both increasingly difficult.
Ultimately, the value of the peso should not be judged by numbers alone, but by what those numbers mean for the people who depend on it. A country’s progress is not measured by its currency’s performance in international markets, but by whether its citizens can afford food, education, healthcare, and a future worth working toward. A rising dollar is not automatically a victory, and a weakening peso should never be treated as a reason for celebration. For Filipino youth, this is more than an economic issue; it is a question of the future we will inherit. We cannot afford to remain silent while rising prices threaten our dreams and narrow our opportunities. We must educate ourselves, challenge misleading claims, hold our leaders accountable, and demand policies that put people’s welfare above political convenience. Through informed discussions, responsible participation, and collective action, young Filipinos must make their voices heard, not someday, when we are older, but now, while decisions about our future are being made. We are not merely the next generation expected to endure the consequences; we are the generation with the right to demand better. The dollar may continue to rise, but our expectations for a fairer, stronger, and more inclusive Philippine economy must rise with it.